


College for a Plague Doctor

by Whatever21ism



Category: Assassin's Creed
Genre: F/M, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-02-16
Updated: 2016-02-20
Packaged: 2018-05-21 02:38:37
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,476
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6034834
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Whatever21ism/pseuds/Whatever21ism
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A NPC Doctor's story about studying medicine, maturing, and learning how to get ahead in life. Do your best, Dottore!</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

“Now remember, students, you are protected by the Church, should you run into any troubles, simply inform the authorities you are a student of the University, and all will be absolved.”

My peers cheered around me as we were handed our robes, and as I took mine I was conflicted in my emotions. I was excited to finally be in higher education and study medicine, but at the same time I feared the corruption the Church brought to the University. I walked back to my quarters; robe in hand, recalling stories I had heard around Florence of students abusing their immunity. I knew it was only a matter of time before I would witness first-hand the lawlessness of University students. 

Upon entering my quarters I laid out my new robe and hat. I took off my top shirt, and slipped the black robe over my head. I situated my new hat, and looked down at myself, turning my head. The long black robe was the dress of medical students, and it made sense. Once I donned a belt and applied wax to the fabric it would be more or less my uniform as a doctor. Once I graduated that was. I removed my robes, and began to get ready for work. 

I was from the country, and Florence was an entirely new world to me. One of the first things I noticed were how…. young people acted. I was the same age as my peers, 17, yet I already had a wife. Granted it was not my choice, it was a vain attempt to save my family’s farm, but nonetheless, here I was, completely moved out from the farm and into the city with my wife, ready to start a new life. It occurred to me that “student” seemed to be a full time occupation for my peers, and while I planned on dedicating myself fully to studies, I still needed to work part-time in order to provide for my wife, and my education. 

I had managed to convince the local Botanist of my worthiness by demonstrating my knowledge of plants, and he agreed to hire me to collect, catalogue, and organize samples. Thus far it had been tedious work, but it got me the soldi I needed, almost a florin a month, so I could not complain. 

 

“Studente….” A voice called out to me as I was walking to the field, I turned around, eyes resting on a large man. “Studente…please pardon my disturbance, but I cannot help but notice you are a medical student. I blinked, unsure of how he made this correct assumption until he pointed to my head. 

“…Oh.” I had forgotten to remove my hat. “You are correct, I forgot to take this off before I went out.” I explained, slightly embarrassed. I motioned to remove the hat but he gestured for me to put my hands down. 

“No, no, it suits you.” He smiled. I could feel the heat in my cheeks, and quickly examined him to change the conversation. I focused in on the fact his apron seemed to be covered in blood, and while butcher would have been my first guess, I then noticed the mask tucked neatly into his belt. He was an executioner. My eyes widened, and I looked back at his face.  
“I-uh, have I done something wrong?” I asked. He let out a loud laugh, shaking his head. He stepped closer and encouraged me to keep walking the way I was going. He began to speak as I continued. 

“No no, studente, I am here to ask you if you would be interested in some…service I can provide.” He grinned. “Well, it is double sided, you help me, I help you.” I looked up at him, intrigued. 

“Illegal, I am sure.” I snorted, shaking my head. 

“Legality is subjective, studente, I am offering you a chance to improve your studies, put you ahead of your peers.” 

“I am not interested in cheating.” 

“No no, not cheating. Materials. Bodies. For you to study.” 

“…Bodies?” 

“Cadavers is what I believe you call them.” 

“Studying cadavers is strictly regulated by the Church, it would be a huge infraction for me to study bodies on my own volition.” I looked down at the ground we were walking on. He laughed heartily. 

“You don’t fool me, little ateo.” His eyes narrowed, still smiling at me. I drew a breath in. 

“Where do you get off calling me an Atheist?” I stopped our walk, turning to face him. 

“I’ve been observing you.” He shrugged. “You don’t attend church, you did no blessings for your new home you and your wife moved into, and most importantly, you wear no cross beneath your clothes.” He looked down at my chest, smirking. I grabbed my chest, backing up slightly. 

“So you have been stalking me then?” I shot back. 

“Hey, relax, I don’t give a rat’s ass if you believe there is a big man in the sky determining our fate. In fact, I like it, because it means you have no moral barriers in your decision to make a deal with me.” My shoulders relaxed. 

“I get cadavers to study, what is the benefit for you?” 

“Disposing of them is an extreme inconvenience. You dispose them for me once you’re done…doing whatever it is doctors do with dead bodies.” 

“And if I get caught?” 

“Tell them you work for me.” 

“And your name?”

“Il Carnefice, you?” He chuckled. 

“Il Dottore.” I smirked back, taking his hand and shaking it.


	2. Chapter 2

“You should hang out with us on the weekend, you’re always going home. Come drink with us for once!” Armani, a classmate of mine, begged. I smiled, putting my hands up and shaking them to say no. 

“I have to go home on weekends to my wife, she is all alone, and the city is new to the both of us.” I shrugged, walking back to my quarters to collect my belongings. 

“I still can’t believe you’re married. I wouldn’t dream of marriage until after school. What about next Friday? Surely your wife doesn’t need you every single day of the weekend.” He winked and patted me on the back. I smiled meekly. 

On my way home, I stopped by Florence’s gallows, Carnefice was waiting for me with an already loaded cart. 

“Couple young men, led a life of violent crime, their best use is for medicine.” He shrugged.

“Public execution has always been wicked in my eyes.” I gripped the cart, looking up at him. 

“You shouldn’t engage peasants with politics, Dottore, you’ll just wind up making yourself frustrated.” He peeled off his leather mask, stuffing it in his belt. “I enjoy my brutal job to its fullest, just as you enjoy yours.” 

“We are equals, as all people are.” I responded. He seemed surprised by my statement but did not respond. “Surely you can agree that executing for the public to behold is sadistic in nature.” 

“Dottore, do you truly believe that these two men who lie in the cart now are equal to you? The same men who violently stole what was not theirs, from both rich and poor?”  
“I mean what I say, so yes. If they had been, they wouldn’t even be in this cart. They would get a slap on the hand from our headmaster. Can you not see how this is an injustice?” I huffed. Carnefice just let out his usual hearty laugh, slapping me on the back, which caused me to stumble forward due to the sheer amount of strength the man possessed. 

“Dottore! I’ve never met a more righteous Atheist! You are truly an enigma to me. You can’t fret too much, you’re a man of medicine, not a politician or clergyman. The deed is already done, take them home and learn from their anatomy. “ I looked back at the cart and nodded, taking it in my hands firmly. 

“Do you truly enjoy your job?” I asked before starting to leave. 

“I enjoy my job with the satisfaction of the most depraved sadist.” He grinned. 

“At least you are an honest man. I respect that. Even if you are in the business of killing, and I am in the business of keeping alive, how odd is our partnership?” I smiled, beginning to walk away. 

“Life and death must coexist.” 

“Just as we must, Carnefice.”

He seemed to like that answer because he smiled one last time as I walked away toward my home. 

The walk home was not very long, about 30 minutes. That was one nice feature of city life. Things were very close together. I came up on my home, a small little structure tucked away. It did have a private yard and shed though, where I had set up my study area. It would now be where I examined cadavers I supposed. I walked in my courtyard, locking the gate behind me, and brought the cart behind the shed. I looked around for signs of people, but there were none, so I brought the two cadavers into my shed. One by one. I laid them both out on my table, slightly out of breath by this point, and removed their clothing. I knew I had to prevent them from rotting quickly so I set up two systems to drain them of their blood. It would take awhile for it to all come out, so I washed up before heading back inside. 

“Hello, dear.” I greeted as I entered our home. She was in the kitchen, but made no response to me. I entered, sitting down on the small wooden chairs, looking over at her. “Did you have a good day?” 

“Mmhm.” She replied, not looking up from her cross-stitch. 

“My school mates want me to go out with them next Friday-“

“Thank God, I was beginning to wonder if you were too much of a freak to make any friends.” She snorted, still not looking up at me. 

I frowned, stood up, and walked into the common area to put away my books for the weekend. She had been this way since I first met her. 

When my wife had first been informed she would be marrying into my family she was a child and most likely expected one of my older brothers. Strong, athletic, and very dedicated to my family’s farm, but upon realizing she would be marrying me, it must have come as a disappointment. I was neither athletic, nor dedicated to farming life. I was a scholarly type, “meek and full of useless ideas” my father once lovingly put. Our marriage was more or less agreed upon when we were children, but we were also wed to tie together her family with mine, in order to bring wealth into our farm that had been fighting with multiple seasons of bad harvest along with pressure from local landlords to relinquish control to them. This plan was futile though, because even though our marriage gave us funds to continue farming, my father passed away shortly after. Taken early due to years of harsh labor. My siblings began to fight profusely as to who should inherit what land. I sold my portion to my oldest brother, who was by far the superior farmer, and used these funds to move out of the farm and into the city. My wife, who had been expecting the life in the country with her family’s support, was now suddenly thrust into life with just me in Florence. Her family had cut her out, just as mine did to me, upon our departure. We were seen as traitors, people who saw themselves as “too good” for peasant life, and thus shut out from communication and funds. I was completely fine with this for I held great contempt for my family, but she missed them dearly. I could tell, even if she never expressed this sentiment. If this wasn’t enough, her and I simply had no chemistry. We liked none of the same things, and felt no romantic attraction to one another. As a result, neither of us had…enjoyed each other’s flesh since the consummation of our marriage. I must admit that I am a bit of a romantic, so the coldness had been draining on me emotionally. Before we officially moved, I broached the topic of divorce, but she would not hear of it. As all country people were, she held fiercely to tradition. My vows included making the marriage work as long as we were together, and so I kept my promise. Remaining loyal to her, and her loyal to me. 

 

“Dear, tell me what is on your mind?” I looked over at her from the reading chair over into the kitchen. 

“Men should not be concerned with a woman’s thoughts.” She put her needle into her cross-stitch, before putting it away. She stood up, tying her apron tightly around her waist, and beginning to prep supper. 

“Well, then tell me what you did today, at least.” I prodded. She looked over at me and sighed. 

“I went to the market, bought our food and some candles, came back here, tidied up, and then worked on my cross-stitching.” She said curtly, beginning to chop up some onions. 

“What about earlier this week? Have you met anyone interesting?” I asked, thumbing open my book, and beginning to read. 

“…Now that you mention it, a strange brute came up to me in the market asking me about you. City dwellers are so concerned with the life of peasants.” She huffed. “He even had the nerve to ask where I was from, and reached out to touch my hair!” She added angrily. “As if he had never seen blonde hair before.” She shoved the now chopped vegetables into a large cast-iron pot. 

“Your hair is rare for Italians, but that is no excuse for him to attempt to touch you. Do you remember his characteristics?” I sat up straight. 

“Si, tall and wide. His apron was covered in blood, and he wore an executioner’s mask over his face, but his nose was quite large and grotesque.” She poured water into the pot along with some spices, and lit the fire in our stove to begin cooking. 

“…I know who he is. He is an executioner, si, he was looking for me to do business, I am sorry he tried to touch you, I will speak to him.” I looked out the window, there was still a bit of daylight. 

“Executioners are even below us, there is no business to be had with them.” She looked fiercely at me. 

“You would be surprised.” I shrugged; I knew she wouldn’t press me. I sat up though, intent on speaking to Carnefice. “I’ll be back soon.” She waved at me, and I exited our home. I first checked near the gallows to no avail, but happened upon another executioner who laughed at me when I asked about Carnefice. 

“It’s Friday, he’s at his usual, The Gilded Tavern.” I thanked him, and began to head towards the tavern. Upon coming up to the establishment, I couldn’t help but notice the large amount of students surrounding the area who were more or less already drunk. I entered the tavern, looking around, and quickly spotted him, sitting at the bar on his own. I sat next to him. 

“Ah, the little Dottore~! What brings you here!” He swung his arm around me, pulling me into his chest and hiccupping. 

“My wife told me you came up to her and tried to touch her hair.” I said firmly, pushing myself away from him. 

“She is blonde! How lucky you are, your children will surely be beautiful.” He smiled, taking a swig of his ale. 

“Just because she is blonde doesn’t mean you can touch her hair.” I folded my arms, I knew he wasn’t sober and it probably didn’t mean much to say this, but it still bothered me. 

“Worried a big brute like me’ll damage yur property?” He slurred, and then began to laugh. 

“My wife is not my property.” I drew back. 

“You are the weirdest farmer boy I have ever met in my damn life, always going on about…equality…. like some kind of damn Florentine writer…. I told you to stay out of politics…” He rolled his head back. 

“Women are very important on the farm.” I waved my hand. “If anything it is the people in the city who view women in such low regard.” I countered, narrowing my eyes at him. He smirked back at me. 

“Women are very important in the city, little Dottore.” He looked away from me and over at a group of courtesans who were displaying themselves over at the side of the Tavern. He waved them over, and pointed at me. They walked over, draping their thin arms over Carnefice. “My friend here is a very uptight studente, maybe you can loosen him up?” he chuckled. The women moved from him over to me, their arms wrapping around me, and one woman rubbed my chest, causing me to become very red. 

“N-no thank you, ladies.” I stammered out. They giggled at me, attempting to make me leave the seat. “I am married.” 

“Studente, so young! It doesn’t matter though- all married men come to us at one point.” One of the women smiled, still urging me to leave my seat. 

“I don’t have any money anyways- so please.” They frowned, but this answer seemed to make them leave. Carnefice looked at me with one eyebrow raised. He leaned in closer, whispering. 

“…Do you prefer the other sex?” He asked. My face lit up bright red. 

“I am a married man, Carnefice, I am loyal to wife. This should be apparent as I came here to tell you not to harass her.” 

“You didn’t answer my question.” He laughed, taking another swig. “I appreciate your loyalty though. I promise not to harass her. It was only once to get to know you anyways.” He shrugged.


	3. Chapter 3

Upon returning home I checked my shed, and the cadavers seemed to be completely drained. I took my shovel and made a deep hole in the earth. Pouring the blood in, I then buried it. I rinsed out my buckets, and then set about to work. I lit a few candles in my shed for better lighting, and sharpened my scalpel. The first body was of a man who appeared to be in his 30s. His cause of death was obviously asphyxia due to being hanged. I cut into his chest, neatly dragging my scalpel down his chest to his belly button. I then cut slits sideways, allowing the skin to form a flap I could peel back. 

I had never dissected a human before, it was only my first year at University, so my only knowledge was from books I had read. His skin, I found, had to be cut away from the muscles, and once that was done the ribs were more or less enclosed by muscle. I took a sharp pair of scissors and cut though them on the right side. It was difficult as he was a fresh cadaver, and the bones had not yet become brittle. After a bit of work, I managed to peel back the ribcage to reveal the man’s heart and lungs. 

I rinsed my hands and noted the size of his heart as well as his lungs. Upon close examination of his heart I found some discoloration in certain areas. Without knowing details about his life, I couldn’t assess the cause, but sketched it to the best of my ability. 

I worked through the remainder of the cadaver, taking notes on the man’s organs and any notable differences from what I had seen in my books. It had been a lot harder than I had imagined, and I had even begun to sweat from removing fat and muscle. I sat down, rather exhausted, and after a minute or so began to clean up. I folded the skin and muscle back over the cadaver and draped the cloth over him. I would examine the other body tomorrow, and then dispose of them on Sunday. As I cleaned myself up I realized that I had a lot more studying to do before dissection would become truly valuable to me, but regardless it was an extremely rare opportunity that the Church almost always forbid. 

I washed myself, scrubbing deep underneath my nails to get the bits of skin and fat that had become lodged underneath. I then exited my shed, and went back inside. 

“I talked to the executioner, I don’t believe he’ll be harassing you again.” I said upon entering. My wife looked over at me, nodded, and then served supper on the small wooden table in the kitchen. “It smells good.” 

“It’s just stew with leftover chicken. The best I could do with what little soldi you gave me.” She sat down, ripping off a piece of stale bread and dipping into her stew. 

“I’m sorry, I’ll work more next week.” I replied, putting a spoonful of the stew in my mouth. It was hot, but tasted good and filling. I couldn’t help but laugh a bit to myself because I realized what I had just been doing, and the fact that I was now eating was a bit amusingly morbid. My wife raised an eyebrow at me, but continued to eat in silence. I had never seen myself as an extremely morbid person, nor did I derive pleasure from the cutting up of human bodies, it was just…a part of being a medical student. The only exciting part for me was learning something new, or the possibility of learning something new. I knew this wasn’t the case for all students at my University though. There were some I could tell who were a bit sadistic, and took too much joy in death, a bit like Carnefice. 

After dinner I helped my wife wash the dishes and then curled up in the common area with my book for my reading assignment. She sat in the chair beside me and continued to work on her cross-stitching. My wife was unable to read like most non-Noble women. I offered to teach her, but she had refused me, telling me that it would just waste our time. I looked over at work and admired it because she was actually quite talented with needle and thread. She had sewn our clothes, and our walls were now decorated with many cross-stitch pieces she had finished. Many of them were very ornate. 

“You should sell your skills. I think many people would be interested in your embroidery.” I commented. She paused, holding up the hoop to her eye level. 

“…my place is in the home.” She set it back down on her lap. I rested my head in my hand and sighed. 

“What about when we achieve nobility?” 

“If you achieve nobility I’ll truly be amazed. You’re studying to be a doctor, not a banker.” She scoffed. 

“A job title cannot guarantee your position in life, only how much work you put into it.”


	4. Chapter 4

Burying bodies had been harder than I anticipated. It was no wonder why Carnefice wanted me to do this. I had brought the cart out to a swamp about an hour out of town with the now dissected cadavers and began to dig into the mud. I figured that their chances of being accidentally dug up out here were smaller than if they had been put in a field. They had provided me with much knowledge, and even though they were criminals in their life, they deserved a final resting ground. It had to be better than a plague pit. 

The mud wasn’t too wet where I dug, it was more of a wet sand texture and the hole was dug in no time. Once I effectively buried them, I covered their final grave with decaying plants and branches, shoving a large stone in it so I would not accidentally dig them up when I would have to bury more. 

I wiped the sweat off my forehead with a rag and then headed back in town to the gallows where I would drop the cart off. 

When I arrived no one was around, it was Sunday, and almost everyone, including my wife, was in Church. It greatly irritated her I didn’t attend. I reflected on what I was doing as I walked back home. Was it immoral to bury these bodies in unmarked graves? I took comfort in the fact that with all the plague deaths there wasn’t any room for them in actual graveyards or mausoleums anyways, and that a swamp was better than mass burial surrounded in bodies covered in buboes. The bodies Carnefice gave me obviously had no family; otherwise they would have buried them. This, in a way, made me feel as if I was their last steward on earth. Forgotten souls, their last moments spent in public ridicule for the crime of theft. Me, their Charon, sailing them into the afterlife after I had prepared them with my scalpel- I ended up walking into a post just then. Completely lost in my thoughts, I had failed to pay attention where I was going. 

I stumbled back, rubbing my head and gathering what I had just done. How embarrassing. I looked around but it seemed that no one had seen me do this. I sighed in relief. 

Just when I was about to continue my walk home I heard a chuckle, I whipped around but still saw no one. 

“Laugh at my face if you must, but do not ridicule me in secret.” I huffed, folding my arms. A man came out from the shadows, still smiling. He was clearly a noble, but not just that. His coat was a deep red, and fringed with ermine fur. The details on is coat were delicately embroidered gold stars. This was the uniform of Gonfaloniere of Justice. I swallowed, bowing deeply. “Pardon my tongue, signore-“ 

“No no, you have nothing to apologize for. That gave me some good amusement.” He motioned for me to stop bowing. I stood back up straight, still feeling nervous. “Are you a student?” He then asked me. 

“Si, a medical student. I am studying to become un dottore….” I replied, my hands fidgeting with each other. 

“Un dottore! Excellent, Florence is always in need of more. My name is Ilario Auditore by the way, Gonfaloniere of Justice. I can tell you already knew that though from your sweating. Relax! You haven’t done anything wrong…. well that I know of!” He laughed, holding out his hand for me to shake it. I took it, smiling slightly. I introduced myself, and he slapped his hand on my shoulder. 

“How old are you?”  
“17, signore.” 

“You remind me of one of my nephews, Giovanni. He has a sharp tongue like you.” I smiled. 

“Thank you, signore, it has been both a blessing and curse my entire life.” He smirked at my answer. 

“Where are you heading on this Sunday afternoon?”

“Home, to my wife.” I replied. His eyes widened with surprise. 

“So young! Well I won’t keep you then. I hope our paths cross again soon.” He began to walk away, and waved. I waved back, and continued on my way. It was good to know that not everyone in public service was detestable. 

 

After eating dinner and reviewing my notes, I packed up my books. I said goodbye to my wife and set back out to school. 

When I arrived back into my quarters I organized my belongings, and quickly fell asleep. 

The next morning I put on my student robes and hat, and set out to class. The professor greeted us all, and I sat down. He looked up at all of us from his lecturing point and smiled. 

“I hope everyone had a productive weekend. I will be examining each of you today to see how well you mastered the concepts from your readings.” He called on Armani first, who answered several of the questions correctly. Our professor nodded, and moved on to several more students before coming to me. 

“How would you proceed to check if a patient’s humors were in balance?” 

“By checking their complexion, and then their urine, signore.” 

“Good, and what if the urine is reddish in appearance?” 

“That would be a sign of fever.” 

“Milky?”

“Dropsy.” 

“These questions appear to be too easy for you. How many valves does the human heart contain?” 

“Four.”

“The heart is connected to the lungs through what?” 

“The pulmonary artery.” My class shifted a bit to look at me, we had not yet covered blood systems, but I had seen it first hand while doing my dissection. I shifted on the seat. 

“Great work. Obviously you have been studying very hard. Everyone else, you should all take him as an example to follow. “ I folded my hands in my lap and fidgeted with them. Our professor began to lecture about the humors and their functions. He then began to shift focus to the liver and its importance. 

After class ended my professor asked me to stay. I stood there silently. We waited for the other students to leave. 

“You have shown exceptional study habits when compared to your peers.” He opened up with. 

“Thank you, signore.” 

“Usually I only personally apprentice upperclassmen, but I can tell you have a strong dedication. Would you be interested in studying with me at the hospital with a few other exceptional students? I have been invited to an intellectual gathering not this Friday, but the next. The older students and now you, have been extended this invitation.

My eyes lit up, the opportunity he was offering me was extremely generous. Intellectual gatherings had some of Italy’s most elite artists, scientists, and politicians. I drew a breath in.

“I would be honored, surely.” I replied, hesitating for a brief moment. “My only concern is my wife, I would hate to leave her for so many days alone.” 

“Ah, I forget that you are a young groom. Well, women are welcome to this gathering as well. It’s very progressive. Please bring her.” He put his hand out to shake mine. I took his hand firmly and did. 

“Uh, just another question, what is the dress code?” I asked, unsure. I didn’t have clothes that would fit in with my other noble peers. 

“Your student robes are fine. For your wife…” He paused for a moment. He opened up his pouch, handing me 30 soldi. I turned bright red.  
“Oh, no, signore, I could not possibly accept your money. I live comfortably.” I tried to hand it back. 

“No no, I know you are from the country, and that your wife’s apparel must be modest. Take these soldi, if not for you, for your wife so that she is not ridiculed for being underdressed. “ He closed my palm around them. I relented and put them in my pouch. 

“I am extremely grateful, signore, I will make you proud.” I bowed my head, and he dismissed me. 

Usually I did not go home during the week as it was quite a walk, but if my wife was to buy materials and sew a dress for herself, I knew she would need the money as soon as possible. After I was finished with my school obligations I quickly headed back home, the soldi’s weight in my pocket giving me an extra bounce. 

When I arrived my wife was surprised to see me, and even more surprised when I handed her the silver. 

“You and I have been invited to a social gathering. My professor gave me this so that you can buy yourself materials to make a suitable dress. It is in two weeks.” She looked stunned, but still pocketed the money. 

“You cannot expect me to attend, a gathering such as that is no place for me.” She folded her arm. I frowned. 

“He went out of his way to invite you and I, it would be a great insult to decline such a generous invitation. Please, many nobles will be there, and making a good impression would help my career greatly. He also wants me to study with him at the hospital.” I explained, my hands gesturing a bit more forceful than usual. 

“Fine, but do not expect me to be a glowing example of fine conversation. I have not a lot to say to such liberal minded people.” 

“So I’ve observed.” I rolled my eyes. She let out a quiet growl, unpleased with my side comment. “I’ll see you Friday night.” I quickly added, getting ready for my departure. 

I left, and headed back to the University.


End file.
